State estimations for Obamacare insurance exchange enrollments

The health insurance exchanges that are part of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul went online on Oct. 1, with some states rolling out their own versions and other states relying on the federal government's portal, healthcare.gov, to help citizens find their now-mandatory insurance coverage.

However, technical problems with the federal government's website — attributed first to heavy traffic, and later to more structural issues like a lack of testing — have kept individuals in 36 states across the U.S. from enrolling.

Uninsured Americans have until Dec. 14 to enroll for plans that start on Jan. 1, and open enrollment runs through March 31. The March 31 deadline has been challenged, however, with the Jackson Hewitt tax preparation company pointing out that the real health care deadline falls more around Feb. 14 due to processing time, The Associated Press reported on Oct. 10.

According to an Oct. 20 Associated Press article, 476,000 health care applications have been filed through federal and state exchanges, but administration officials have not released any actual insurance enrollment numbers.

Here's a look at the 50 states, the types of exchanges they are using (state, federal or partner) and rough estimates of enrollment figures according to various media reports.

Alabama

Associated Press

Type of exchange: Federal

Alabama's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

Alabama's goal for marketplace signups is 5,740 by the end of the month and 82,000 by March 31, 2014.

Alaska's exchange is being run by the federal government, and official enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

As of October 14, attempts to enroll in the new health care exchange in Alaska, which chose to use the federal marketplace, have been a failure, The Associated Press reported at the time. According to a letter from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Ala., to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, "in its first two weeks of operation, I am told that no one was able to enroll in the Alaska Exchange."

Alaska's goal for marketplace signups is 1,400 by the end of the month and 20,000 by March 31, 2014.

About 500,000 Arkansans are expected to buy insurance through the exchange, John Lyon of the Arkansas News Bureau wrote, with about half buying private insurance using federal Medicaid dollars, which are available for those making up to 138 percent of the poverty level.

Arkansas' goal for signups is 3,570 by the end of October and 51,000 by March of 2014.

The Los Angeles Times reported on Oct. 15 that nearly 95,000 applications have been started on the exchange, while The Sacramento Bee noted that 16,311 households completed applications during the first week of enrollment.

According to The Washington Post, California has signed up 600,000 low-income people for Medicaid, which was expanded under the health care law.

California's launch didn't run perfectly smoothly on Oct. 1, with californiahealthline.org reporting that the website stalled or was down for most of the day and had to be taken offline hours after its launch, while people who called in faced 40-minute waits. However, the article went on to say, many believe that too much is being made of the glitches, and that the program will be successful in the state.

California's goal for marketplace signups is 91,000 by the end of October and 1,300,000 by March 31, 2014.

Ben Davis, a spokesman for the exchange, told the Pueblo Chieftain that the state hopes to have 136,000 people signed up on the exchange by the end of 2014.

The New York Times reported on Oct. 16 that Colorado is one of four states that have search tools on their exchange websites where users can search by a provider's name to see what plans include that provider in their network.

Colorado's goal for marketplace signups is 6,400 by the end of October and 92,000 by March 31, 2014.

The Connecticut Mirror reported on Oct. 18 that total enrollment on the Access Health CT exchange is at 3,847 people, with 1,125 enrolling in private insurance plans plus a subsidy, 772 enrolling in private insurance plans and no subsidy, and 1,857 signing up for Medicaid.

Additionally, the site reported, 8,396 applications have been started. Of these, 2,372 were completed. The Washington Post, while agreeing that 2,372 applications had been processed, reported on Oct. 20 that 12,547 accounts had been created.

Connecticut's goal for marketplace signups is 2,310 by the end of the month and 33,000 by March 31, 2014.

On Oct. 16, The Associated Press reported that officials had declared 59-year-old Janice Baker as the first confirmed Delaware resident to enroll in the state's online marketplace.

Delaware is operating a state-federal partnership and was therefore hit by the glitches and problems that have plagued the federal health exchange website. Rita Landgraf, Delaware's Secretary of Health and Social Services, told The Associated Press that there were glitches in the first two weeks of the sign-up process, but website upgrades and troubleshooting on the user's end, like clearing the computer's history and cookies, should help.

Delaware's goal for marketplace signups is 560 by the end of the month and 8,000 by March 31, 2014.

As of Oct. 20, Hbx.dc.gov, the Health Benefit Exchange Authority website in Washington, D.C., indicated that 8,427 accounts had been created, 1,112 applications had been submitted and 167 plans had been selected.

Washington, D.C.'s goal for marketplace signups is 3,010 by the end of the month and 43,000 by March 31, 2014.

Florida's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

According to an Oct. 11 Tampa Bay Times article, agents working to enroll people through the federal exchange in Florida informed the paper that insurers were telling them to hold off on exchange enrollments until the first of November due to federal website glitches that make it difficult to calculate what subsidies an individual may qualify for.

Florida's goal for marketplace signups is 33,390 by the end of the month and 477,000 by March 31, 2014.

Georgia's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

According to Andy Miller from Georgia Health News, it took until Oct. 16 for community health centers in Georgia to successfully sign up their first customer on the federal website. The process took two hours.

Georgia's goal for marketplace signups is 14,280 by the end of the month and 204,000 by March 31, 2014.

The website was created by the same company responsible for the federal website, kitv.com reported, and Hawaii's site has been plagued by many of the same problems, like having user names and passwords rejected or seeing the website crash.

Hawaii's goal for marketplace signups is 630 by the end of the month and 9,000 by March 31, 2014.

According to an Oct. 17 article on idahoreporter.com, members of the Idaho insurance exchange board indicated that the state was closing in on 75 applicants almost two weeks after the insurance exchanges went live across the country.

"This is nowhere near the estimates that we were given by consultants two years ago," chairman of the exchange board Stephen Wegg said. "We haven't even gotten out of the gate yet, let alone begun to taxi."

On Oct. 8, KTVB's Matt Standal found that users were seeing error messages indicating high volumes of traffic on the Idaho website, but larger problems emerged when the Idaho information portal redirected people to the federal system to actually register for insurance.

"For the next open enrollment, which begins October 15, 2014, Your Health Idaho intends on having our own technology in place, our own application system, our own case management system," Alberto Gonzalez, the operations manager for Your Health Idaho, told KTVB. "Everything will be ours."

Idaho's goal for marketplace signups is 2,800 by the end of the month and 40,000 by March 31, 2014.

The Illinois Watchdog website published on article on Oct. 16 challenging Ill. Gov. Pat Quinn's announcement that more than 100,000 people have enrolled through the health care law, saying that most were early enrollees last year and all 100,000 had enrolled in Medicaid rather than private insurance.

As a state/federal partnership, Illinois has been affected by ongoing problems with the federal exchange website.

On Oct. 19, Chicago Tribune reporter Peter Frost wrote that Illinois officials and insurance companies were delaying marketing campaigns pushing for enrollment due to ongoing problems with the federal website, while a few enrollment numbers began to trickle in.

Illinois's goal for marketplace signups is 10,010 by the end of the month and 143,000 by March 31, 2014.

The Associated Press reported Sunday that Iowa, which chose to run a state/federal exchange partnership, is seeing some numbers beginning to emerge.

"A spokeswoman for one of the two insurance companies providing insurance in Iowa through the exchange said they have had 16 people enroll using the federal website during the first two weeks," reporter Catherine Lucey wrote.

As of Oct. 9, Iowa's insurance commissioner said he had not heard of anybody enrolling using the new system, the Des Moines Register reported, but a blog posted later that day indicated that at least five people — whom reporter Tony Leys called "the Hardy Handful" — had managed to sign up.

Iowa's goal for marketplace signups is 2,870 by the end of the month and 41,000 by March 31, 2014.

According to governor.ky.gov stats from Oct. 18, 41,845 applications for health care coverage have been started in Kentucky, with 29,792 being completed and 15,480 being enrolled in health care coverage.

Enrollmaven.com's estimate for Kentucky citizens enrolled in a bronze, silver or gold private insurance plan stands at 8,050, based on breaking down the 15,480 to include Medicaid enrollees and a 48 percent Medicaid eligibility among uninsured residents.

Kentucky is one of four states — along with Colorado, Nevada and Washington — whose exchange allows customers to search for providers covered in the various plans, The New York Times reported on Oct. 16.

Kentucky's goal for marketplace signups is 15,400 by the end of the month and 220,000 by March 31, 2014.

According to Oct. 18 numbers released by the state, more than 34,000 people have created accounts for their households on the state's exchange website, and more than 2,300 households have enrolled in coverage. Additionally, some 82,473 people will be automatically enrolled in Medicaid coverage on Jan. 1, 2014.

Maryland's goal for marketplace signups is 10,500 by the end of the month and 150,000 by March 31, 2014.

On Oct. 18, masslive.com reported that as of Thursday of last week, some 3,330 people had submitted completed applications on the state-run exchange, while 15,340 accounts had been created and some 12,885 applications had been started but not completed.

Massachusetts' goal for marketplace signups is 17,500 by the end of the month and 250,000 by March 31, 2014.

Because Michigan has a state-federal partnership for its exchange, people trying to enroll in the state have encountered the same problems citizens in many other states have on the healthcare.gov website.

As of Oct. 17, Ann Flood told the Detroit Free Press that, "we actually do not have any confirmation of anyone signing up on the exchange."

Michigan's goal for marketplace signups is 11,270 by the end of the month and 161,000 by March 31, 2014.

Numbers from the MNsure Metrics report released on Oct. 16 show that 12,011 accounts had been opened and 5,569 applications for insurance coverage had been completed, which would cover a totally of 11,684 people.

However, the data shows — and minnpost.com reports — that of those roughly 5,600 people who had completed applications for coverage, only 406 were getting private health insurance. The rest of the applicants were enrolling in public health programs.

Minnesota ran into trouble early on with its marketplace after an employee sent an email containing the names and Social Security numbers of 1,600 insurance agents to an insurance broker back in mid-September.

Minnesota's goal for marketplace signups is 4,690 by the end of the month and 67,000 by March 31, 2014.

Montana's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

According to an Oct. 18 article published on ravallirepublic.com, insurers and health care groups only know of "a handful" of people who have purchased policies, due in part to the federal government's glitchy website.

Montana's goal for marketplace signups is 2,170 by the end of the month and 31,000 by March 31, 2014.

New Jersey's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

On Sunday, the Asbury Park Press reported that, "four agencies contacted by NJ Press Media said a total of just 69 consumers since Oct. 1 have enrolled either in Medicaid or private insurance plans on the exchange, or have submitted paper applications."

New Jersey's goal for marketplace signups is 6,720 by the end of the month and 96,000 by March 31, 2014.

New Mexico is partially caught up in the federal website trouble, with the state creating and running a Small Business Health Options Program, but allowing the federal government to handle other enrollment issues until the state sets up its own exchange in 2015, according to USA Today.

Because of the federal government involvement, it is difficult to find enrollment numbers for New Mexico, but the state expects to have those numbers in mid-November.

The Associated Press reported on Oct. 18 that an advertising campaign to get people to sign up for health insurance has been pushed back due to the problematic federal health care site.

New Mexico's goal for marketplace signups is 5,810 by the end of the month and 83,000 by March 31, 2014.

According to an Oct. 18 report from the Star Gazette, almost 134,000 New Yorkers had been signed up on the state's health exchange since it launched, although actual enrollment numbers have not been released.

New York's goal for marketplace signups is 15,260 by the end of the month and 218,000 by March 31, 2014.

North Carolina's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

Although North Carolina's official exchange is being run by the federal government, the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce recently announced it is setting up an insurance exchange to sell policies to individuals who are dropped from employee coverage, The Charlotte News Observer reported on Oct. 11.

North Carolina's goal for marketplace signups is 13,370 by the end of the month and 191,000 by March 31, 2014.

According to an Oct. 18 Washington Post article, Oregon signed up 56,000 people for the law's Medicaid expansion, but no private health plan in the state had received an enrollment through the marketplace.

Oregon's goal for marketplace signups is 16,590 by the end of the month and 237,000 by March 31, 2014.

Utah's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

As of Oct. 17, numbers for enrollment using the federal website were sketchy, The Associated Press reported, with Randal Serr of the health care advocacy organization Take Care Utah saying that his group did not know how many people had signed up for coverage through the exchange.

Utah's goal for marketplace signups is 3,990 by the end of the month and 57,000 by March 31, 2014.

National Review reported that as of Oct. 15, the state had 631 people signed up for insurance through its state-run exchange, although the enrollments wouldn't be finalized until mid-December when payment for the plans falls due.

Vermont's goal for marketplace signups is 3,990 by the end of the month and 57,000 by March 31, 2014.

On Oct. 16, Amy Snow Landa of the Seattle Times reported that about 25,000 residents had enrolled in health plans through the state-run exchange up to that point, while an additional 37,000 had completed applications but had not submitted their first payment.

According to the Inlander's Oct. 14 breakdown, of the 24,949 who have completed enrollments, 3,084 are in private insurance plans, 8,495 are in "immediate Medicaid coverage" and 13,370 are in the state's expanded Medicaid system.

Washington's goal for marketplace signups is 23,800 by the end of the month and 340,000 by March 31, 2014.

Wisconsin's exchange is being run by the federal government, and enrollment numbers will reportedly be released around mid-November.

According to an Oct. 15 WFRV report, fewer than 50 Wisconsin residents had enrolled using the federal government's exchange due to trouble with the website, although some health clinics told the station enrollment numbers were likely even lower.

Wisconsin's goal for marketplace signups is 5,530 by the end of the month and 79,000 by March 31, 2014.